MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WLS) -- A 20-year-old Chicago man who once talked of beating the odds is now charged with murdering a fellow student at Alabama State University.
Montgomery police say 20-year-old Ivry Hall was booked into jail Friday on a murder charge. He is accused of fatally shooting 22-year-old Adam Dowdell Jr.
Police have said that Dowdell was found dead Sept. 14, nearly a week after he left his dorm room with a friend to visit an ATM and never returned.
ABC 7 talked to Ivry Hall in 2018 after he graduated as valedictorian of Tilden Career Academy and was awarded a scholarship from Saint Sabina Catholic Church.
Father Michael Pfleger was a mentor to Hall since he was a boy growing up in the Englewood neighborhood.
"It saddens me, it breaks my heart. The Ivry I know is kind-hearted, he's faithful, dedicated young man who wanted to create a positive future for himself," Father Pfleger said.
The agency said in a statement that the circumstances surrounding the shooting remain unknown. It's unclear whether Hall has an attorney who can comment for him.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.